ic It's Mov(in)g Day!

[secondling]

Legatus

 

Felix stopped short, his eyes widening as he looked at the car nearby. That car just... talked? But wait, the voice in which it had spoken was familiar... "Dio?" He said, just in time to hear the car... dragon... confirm it. Breaking into a smile, he extended his own hand to shake the green-scaled claw, though his hand was rather smaller than the draconic appendage. It took him a moment, but he decided to shake one of the claws, which he could get his fingers around, rather than awkwardly high-five the larger green claw.

 

"Good to see you again, Dio. Uh... is there any reason you're being a car, rather than..." XVIII trailed off, thinking hard. "Well, I mean, anything else? Or do you just enjoy being a car?" He released his grip on the dragon's appendage, before shaking his head slightly. "No, no plans. I just came to look at the students..." And their parents.

 

Parents were an intellectual abstract for XVIII, something that happened to other people. Dr. Syagrius hadn't really been a "father" in the sense he'd seen in the informative films and lessons that he'd been supplied with as a child. Seeing adults and their children together was something that was relatively new to him. They looked happy together, for the most part, and a smile blossomed on his lips at the thought. 

 

Abruptly, Felix noticed a muscular young man approaching him - as well as Dio, and he looked up, his smile fading into a look of pleased curiosity. "Ah, hello there."

[Dr Archeville]

Horrorshow -- Dorm Interior, 2nd Floor

 

Davyd stood frozen in place, not so much from the cold as from the shock of the sudden attack.  He couched up a chunk of hail as Pan brushed his shoulder.  He then realized how it must all look, and started to laugh.  "I got what I deserved, I suppose.  Good reflexes there!  Micah, was it?"  He extended a hand to the weather controlled, realized it was still tentacle-y, and set it back to normal with a shake.  His mouth remained shark-y.  "A pleasure to meet you.  And you're this one's roommate?  What an adventure that must be!"  He turned his head to face the Forever Boy and extended his other hand to him, "and how have you been?  I've not seen you since the Virgin Islands -- get up to anything else over the summer?"

Edited September 19, 2019 by Dr Archeville

[Dr Archeville]

Artificer -- Dorm Interior, 1st Floor

 

He clasped Kameron's hand, smiling back, "Heroditus Fabricus Stylianos, of Atlantis.  I go by Heroditus among... colleagues."  He suddenly felt a small pang of other-ness, realizing he didn't really have any friends back home.  "Ah, so you are roommates!  And were roommates last year?"  He tried to make no reaction concerning the curfew violations, but did file away a mental note.  "I have yet to meet mine.  Do either of you know a Benjamin d'Amato?  The note I received indicated he and I would be sharing a room," he glanced at the stairs, "up on the second floor.  Oh!" he noticed Kam & Leroy's room number, "I believe I shall be in the room directly above you two!  Speaking of my room, have either of you seen the RA?  I need to confirm some things with him."

[Heritage]

"Yeah, okay," Lulu said absently as her boyfriend departed, as she was largely focused on her telepathic conversation with the new boy. The redheaded junior found a shady spot on a bench to continue her talk; there were tears in her eyes, as she'd been lost in painful memories before Adam inadvertently shook her out of her reverie.

 

- Sorry about that; I went to a dark place for a minute there. -

 

Then she shook her head at Nick's line of reasoning.

 

- I think you'd be surprised at what your capable of, Nick. But you'll need to be patient, and you'll need to forgive yourself for making mistakes, because we all make them. -

 

After a slight pause, Lulu continued.

 

- Would you be interested in trying meditation? I'm thinking of starting a sort of club here at school. I use it to calm myself down when I get rattled, and to help drive out extraneous thoughts when the city gets too 'noisy'. How does that sound to you? -

[Dariusprime]

The telepathic connection was quiet. Finally, Sure, I guess. That sounds good. You pick up thought 'noise'? Seems to work judging from how level-headed you are. When is...

 

A burst of static and a mental 'flash' drowned out the message. The next reply wasn't a message but a echo of his internal thoughts. What the heck was that?

 

In the real world, Nick was laying on his back and rubbing the back of his head. The shout-shriek in the hallway made him jump and tumble backward with the amp. Doing everything in his power not to grumble, the young man slowly picked himself up.

 

Sorry. Just a sec...someone shouted or something. He peeked out the door. Almost subconsciously, his mind generated a profile of the shout, deconstructed the layers of contemporary sounds, and triangulated the position based on sound diffusion and echoes. The data seeped through the link, and felt like some sort of computer program running.

 

I think some guy was just pranked. They're upstairs so I can't understand them, but everything sounds fine. Nick picked up his guitar and sat down on the floor. He continued staring off in concentration.

 

Nothing to apologize for. Going to a dark place. And I appreciate your confidence...advice... Warm guitar notes drifted in behind the thoughts. In the real world, he was sitting quietly. ...do you want to talk about it? The dark place?

[KnightDisciple]

On 9/18/2019 at 7:44 AM, RocketLord said:

Forever Boy

 

Suddenly, there was a great monster upon them! A shark! An octopus! Both! A sharktopus! Pan let out a laugh as he spun around to face the dread monster! "Brilliant! You managed it!" Oh yes, the dread sharktopus! Quicky moving over between the two, Pan gestured to Davyd, pointing and laughing. "Micah! This is Davyd! He is absolutely brilliant! He can become anything, it seems! Even the dread sharktopus!" 

 

Moving slightly to the side, he started gesturing to Micah. "And Davyd, my friend, this is Micah, the Thunderbird! A great friend, and my roommate!" He quickly reached forward, brushing some frost from Davyd's side. "You have improved, Micah! Much more localized effects now, no?"

Micah shrugged.

 

"Yeah, now I just need to be able to do it consistently. That was...reflex, I guess? But...thanks."

 

He gave his roommate, his friend, a smile. 

 

 

On 9/18/2019 at 9:21 PM, Dr Archeville said:

Horrorshow -- Dorm Interior, 2nd Floor

 

Davyd stood frozen in place, not so much from the cold as from the shock of the sudden attack.  He couched up a chunk of hail as Pan brushed his shoulder.  He then realized how it must all look, and started to laugh.  "I got what I deserved, I suppose.  Good reflexes there!  Micah, was it?"  He extended a hand to the weather controlled, realized it was still tentacle-y, and set it back to normal with a shake.  His mouth remained shark-y.  "A pleasure to meet you.  And you're this one's roommate?  What an adventure that must be!"  He turned his head to face the Forever Boy and extended his other hand to him, "and how have you been?  I've not seen you since the Virgin Islands -- get up to anything else over the summer?"

 

Micah waved off the "got what I deserved" comment.

 

"If you were a less adaptable student I might have hurt you. I need to be better. Weather control sounds awesome until you have it."

 

Then he smiled and extended a hand to return the shake.

 

"Nice to meet you. Yeah, we're roommates. Pan here is good people."

 

He glanced down the hall for a moment.

 

"You here with your family? It's cool they were able to come out. I..."

 

He looked over to Pan, conflict on his face.

 

"I was headed to the roof to get air, think, and play. I still kind of want to. I don't want to blow you guys off, though. Pun not intended. I'm going to head up but if you want to join me, feel free."

[RocketLord]

Forever Boy

 

"Oh, just flying here, there, and everywhere. Still no way home, but been out exploring. And I got one of these! I have been told they are useful!" Pan held up his smart phone, a black thing with a rather large screen, wiggling it a bit. "Everyone seems to have one, do they not?" Slipping the phone back into his pants, he quickly leaned to the side and waved to Davyd's family when Micah mentioned them. "Davyd is awesome! The best sharktopus I have seen so far!" he shouted out to them, before flickering over by Micah, throwing an arm around him again.

 

"Lead the way, my friend! It is always great to hear you play!" It was true, of course, but even then, Pan felt that Micah could use that confidence right now, so why not pour it on just a bit thicker than usual?

[Ari]

Outside-Dio

 

"Just laying low, Felix." For a giant reptile Dio's voice was low and hesitant. The eyes  were once again headlights, and the claw quickly retreated after the shake. "Not a lot of other dragons around, but plenty of cars, and they blend in about as well as I would in my normal shape back home."

 

The green Bug rolled subtly closer, edging out of the parking spot by a milimeter. 

 

"I've been thinking, I need to get independent. Out of this dumb bond and away from Earth-2 for good. There's something here that I gotta figure out. Something in the bones and air of this whole universe."

[Semi-Autogyro]

Claudes' wandering of the dorm halls eventually led him up to the roof, where he was surprised to find it both: unlocked and tastefully decorated. Well, I suppose it makes sense here in FC. Plenty of fliers, so like usin' the front door for 'em. Still strange how many things in this joint are unsecured.

 

The Bostonian moved over to the edge of the roof that faced the bay with the light breeze from the water ruffling his hair. Might as well take a load off, he thought and plunked himself down on the ledge and allowed his feet to dangle over the side. Hopefully Nick would calm down whenever he got back, as his roomies' mood was easy to read. More like an Atlantic City Casino marquee than a paperback, the teen thought. As it was obvious that the kid needed space. Best thing he could do right now was get lost for a hour or so. Plus, maybe he could get some further info from some other students about the enigma that was Little Miss Punchy and her kayfabe act.

 

But for now Claude was content to enjoy the weather, putting a small set of earbuds in to listen to some tunes while he relaxed for a bit. 

Edited September 26, 2019 by Semi-Autogyro

[Ari]

Inside-Sun Dragon

 

Leroy slapped himself in the face "Right! The swordfighter Janus Danger, not the artefact bearer Veronica Danger. I cannot believe I got them so mixed, they do not even look alike!" He looked at Herodotius, the picture of contrition, "Artificer Stylianos, I must beg your pardon for leading you so astray." 

 

He was smiling again in a moment "Kameron and I are indeed 'roomies',  as the other children would say. He is a stalwart and noble man, and I am sure you and he will get on splendidly. Heroditus deals with the melding of the hidden and open sciences, Kameron," he explained briefly to the more powerful boy(Leroy looked positively slight and slender next to him), "given your own interests, I suspect you two will find much in common!"

 

"Never heard of 'Benjamin d'Amato', however. I trust you will soon meet!"

 

"Speaking of 'common', yes, Kameron have you seen Mr. Thorn?" Leroy tried a sharp rata-tat-tat on the assistant's door. The silence spoke volumes. He shrugged "Seems we must wait." He settled back against the wall. 

 

"Dee is...ah. Well..." Leroy fidgeted, his smile stretching and thinning until it almost faded into sheer agony "...you have it a'right, Kameron Kingdom. I attempted to make up for my absence and made a fatal misstep. I must ask you at some time how normally men and women show and earn affection, my pledge of devotion and offer of a blooded ring was met with fierce opposition from Ashley. The elder sister to Judy Smith," he added to Heroditus by way of explanation, "Judy having chosen me for her boyfriend. Ashley has little love for me, sadly. When I promised myself to her sister the two argued and left in tears."

 

"What do you think, Kameron? How would you say I should proceed? You are my elder in love and I trust your judgement."

Edited September 21, 2019 by Ari

[Heritage]

Lulu - Outside

 

Lulu rolled her eyes and shook her head as she adjusted herself on the bench.

 

- My parents...most of my family...are pretty awful. They made me use my powers to rob people and pull scams. I was just a kid, you know? I thought it was a game. But once I realized I was actually hurting people, I wanted to stop; then they forced me to do it. -

 

The teenaged telepath dabbed at tears in the corners of her eyes

 

- Its taken a lot of time with a therapist, my social worker and my foster family to stop blaming myself for the terrible things I did; hell, I still beat myself up from time to time! But it does get better, if you let it. -

[angrydurf]

Kam shook his head, "No This Ben must be new this year, we often get transfers in the later years many abilities manifest along with approaching adulthood and all that."  the secret prince revealed.  He simply glanced at Leroy as he went to knock on the RA's door to no avail.  "I am not certain I can help but if you have any questions about the arrangements here I may be able to point you in the right direction."  Because Kam of course had committed the student handbook to memory in addition to spending not insignificant time exploring the campus in the prior year.

 

Kam looked on on growing horror at Leroys emotional rollercoaster of a tale and his, unique, approach to romance.  The Dakanan blinked slowly as his roommates explanation drew to a close, the boy struck momentarily speechless at the rather audacious tale.  "Ah yes my expertise in that may be less than you give credit for but I think I might be able to identify some, ah, missteps?"  he suggested gently.

 

"First things first, did you perchance apologize in the course of this display of devotion or ...?"  he asked a bit tiredly and bit his lip nervously, "Marriage is not normally arranged at such ages, and uh, blooded anything is in the territory of the unusual to say the least."  he let out a small sigh, "Ashley I'm sure is protective they seem to be of quite conservative background despite the fate of their world."  he paused to consider the situation for a long moment, "If she truly feels as you do Judy will come around if you manage to make genuine amends."  he glanced to the stairs then paused thinking carefully, "Ashley may feel a responsibility for her younger sister without family here, perhaps you should make clear to her your intentions and impress upon her that you'll not break her sisters heart with your antics, that this is real and not a spoiled princes flight of fancy."

 

Kam looked thoughtful at the last and grew introspective murmuring under his breath, 'no this is completely different than..'  He looked back up at Leroy defensively, "Think of the long game not grandiose gestures."

[Dariusprime]

Inside: Room 102

 

Nick listened quietly, taking deliberate efforts not to broadcast feelings or thoughts while she was talking. The reasoning for this tangent may or may not, probably may, have been for his benefit. Regardless he would have been a good and appreciative audience. The more he heard the more pained he felt, and the more difficult keeping the feeling to himself became.

 

Nick didn't rate himself as the most emotionally self-aware person. Sure reading people came easily enough. Introspection was a different matter. Lulu's admission was heart breaking enough on its own. Circling her story back to his predicament hit right in the feels. Honestly, he didn't really know how to process something that raw and honest.

 

A couple of minutes passed in silence. What started as ragged breaths relaxed and turned into a sigh. The sniffles were subsiding as well, and he silently thanked his luck that Claude had stepped out. He was still there, slumped against the wall, now cradling his guitar.

 

I am so very, very happy that you are doing better. I hope your healing continues and these dark places are fewer and farther between. You have been nothing but kind to me, a stranger. I cannot thank you enough for your generosity.

 

Silence followed. In Room 102, Nick blinked in surprise and rubbed his eyes.

[Dr Archeville]

Horrorshow -- Dorm Interior, 2nd Floor

 

Davyd happily shook Micah's hand, "oh, I'm sure!  But that is why we're here, right?  To gain better control over our abilities?  No matter what we ultimately end up using them for," he glanced back over his shoulder, saw his family exit his room to get the last of his stuff from the VW microbus his uncle had borrowed from some "associates."  "Oh, yeah, I'd love to head up there!  And to hear you play!  Just have to finish getting my stuff moved in first.  Shouldn't take much longer, though -- maybe 30 minutes?"  He turned to head off, then saws Pan's phone, "ah, you finally got one of those!  Have you been added to our group chat?"  Adam, Lulu, Veronica, and he had started one after the Virgin Islands thing, to keep in touch.  "I can help with that!," he said as he headed off.

[Dr Archeville]

Artificer -- Dorm Interior, 1st Floor (Outside Room 114)

 

"Oh?!"  He looked at Kameron with revamped interest, "you are a student of mechano-mysticism, too?  I did not know the Surfacers had studied such arts!  If so, this may make some of my studies much easier!"  How fortuitous!

 

He frowned at the lack of response from RA Thorn's door.  "I have not met with him personally, no, but he has spoken with my parents."  He looked back and forth between Leroy and Kam, "a request for a special sleeping chamber had been put in -- pressurized and water-filled, to match the environment of my home -- and we were told it would be ready by the time I arrived.  I had wanted to verify if that was indeed the case.  And now that I know who shall be in the room below me," he smiled and nodded at the two princes, "I want to be doubly sure that it was installed properly, with no leaks!"  He glanced back at the stairs, "though I supposed I could just go up to my room and see for myself."

 

He hesitated, listening to Leroy's relationship problems and Kameron's advice.  Such matters were of little interest to him, but he knew enough of social graces to know that simply walking off would have been considered rude.

[Amelia]

Octoman

 

Once Ben had his computer set up, he started disappearing into his own world mentally, so it took him a minute to realize that he was alone in the dorm room. He ran out into the hall just in time to intercept Dayv as the boy was running to catch up to his family.

 

"Hey, you want a hand? Or, like, a bunch of things that aren't hands but can pick stuff up? I know I don't look like it, but I'm, like, REALLY strong. Like, I don't mean 'Bro do you even lift' strong, I mean 'Bench-press a car' strong. And I'm all done, just one trip. I pack light. Most of my stuff's digital, not really a physical-media type of dude, y'know? Also, Mamá and Tatay both had to work at the last minute, and you gotta rent moving vans in advance, and they don't let sixteen-year-olds drive those, even though I GOT my license so that's some BULLSH-...uh, anyway, so I had to take a rideshare, and there's only so much crap those guys'll let you pile into their car, even when it's some giant gas-guzzling S.U.V. there's no WAY they're making a profit on with a trunk bigger than your whole apartment. You know how it is."

 

[TheAbsurdist]

"Bye Padre, I'll check in soon, eh?" Benjamin Franklin D'amato said as hauled his bags out of the back of the station wagon.  The teen stopped to looked at the taller, older man, the contrast between them was sharp.  Benjamin, Benny most commonly, was a bit above average, but broad shouldered, and built like a truck, thick necked, with his hair in a short crew cut that did little to hide his jug ears, though there was an easy sort of drawling smile on his face.  A thing that seemed to be his norm.  Whereas the man he was referring, Father Nogueira was taller, and whiplash lean, weathered, pockmarked cheeks with a neatly trimmed beard, and slicked back black hair, he seemed decidedly less cheerful than the boy.  Glum even.

"Father."  Nogueira correctly, curtly.  "You will remember to check in Benjamin, yes?"  

"Course Pa... Father Nogueira," came the response, that smile still.  Knowing the Padre wasn't one to stand on too much affection, and really they weren't close, close, Benny leaned over to pick up his backpack and then slide it on, followed by the duffel, and the suitcase.

 

The priest nodded to the boy and clapped a hand to his shoulder when he straightened, "Good luck Benjamin."  Then he got in the car and left.  This wasn't expected, the Father wasn't big on too much emotion especially considering the circumstances.  So he nodded, and then trundled with his stuff towards the dorms.

[KnightDisciple]

On 9/20/2019 at 3:46 PM, RocketLord said:

Forever Boy

 

"Oh, just flying here, there, and everywhere. Still no way home, but been out exploring. And I got one of these! I have been told they are useful!" Pan held up his smart phone, a black thing with a rather large screen, wiggling it a bit. "Everyone seems to have one, do they not?" Slipping the phone back into his pants, he quickly leaned to the side and waved to Davyd's family when Micah mentioned them. "Davyd is awesome! The best sharktopus I have seen so far!" he shouted out to them, before flickering over by Micah, throwing an arm around him again.

 

"Lead the way, my friend! It is always great to hear you play!" It was true, of course, but even then, Pan felt that Micah could use that confidence right now, so why not pour it on just a bit thicker than usual?

 

 

On 9/21/2019 at 1:17 PM, Dr Archeville said:

Horrorshow -- Dorm Interior, 2nd Floor

 

Davyd happily shook Micah's hand, "oh, I'm sure!  But that is why we're here, right?  To gain better control over our abilities?  No matter what we ultimately end up using them for," he glanced back over his shoulder, saw his family exit his room to get the last of his stuff from the VW microbus his uncle had borrowed from some "associates."  "Oh, yeah, I'd love to head up there!  And to hear you play!  Just have to finish getting my stuff moved in first.  Shouldn't take much longer, though -- maybe 30 minutes?"  He turned to head off, then saws Pan's phone, "ah, you finally got one of those!  Have you been added to our group chat?"  Adam, Lulu, Veronica, and he had started one after the Virgin Islands thing, to keep in touch.  "I can help with that!," he said as he headed off.

 

Micah gave Pan a smile and a nod before turning back to Davyd. 

"I'll see you up there. We've got plenty of time to chill out."

 

Once the shape-shifter went back toward his family, the young Oklahoman turned to his friend, eyebrow raised. He opened the stairwell door for his roommate, and followed the other boy as they started a leisurely walk up the stairs.

 

"So the phone thing isn't a surprise, you bugged me enough about mine and kept asking how to stay in touch. But how did you and Davyd meet?"

 

He shifted his guitar case to his other hand as they walked. 

 

"Like, clearly you guys didn't just see each other at Starbucks or whatever."

 

They reached the roof door, and Micah turned and shouldered it open. He used an elbow to push the handle, and his body weight to move the door itself; he shrugged off Pan's attempt to help. The young weather controller's mood had relaxed, but his roommate could still see tension there. Micah turned toward the roof.

 

"You didn't mention any shenan-"

 

He stopped talking and walking as he saw Claude at one end of the rooftop. After a moment, he tilted his head and turned to look at Pan. He spoke, his voice much quieter.

 

"I don't think he can hear us right now. Come on."

 

That was amazingly assertive for the Midwesterner! Micah walked to the other end of the rooftop, where he found a wall just below waist height at the edge. He walked along it until he was at one corner of the roof, well away from Claude and with the little "shed" the stairwell exited out of in between them. There he sat and laid the guitar case in front of himself.

 

"Sorry, I just...coming here today, it was a lot already, yeah? I mean, I've gotten better with my powers, and school itself is going okay. But...last week, my mom and I had a fight. Not a big one, just..."

 

He opened the case and picked up his guitar, beginning to softly tweak the strings as he tuned it. He was clearly in no hurry.

"I...look, I think I've told you about this, but basically no one else. You know I like to work on mechanical stuff, right? Like, cars and bikes and whatnot?"

He didn't look up to see if Pan nodded.
"Mom's got it in her head that that means I'm going to be a mechanic when I get out of college. An airline mechanic, maybe. Or if for some reason I do join the military, it's as, like, a jet mechanic or tank mechanic or something. Something quiet. Safe."

His voice didn't get quite angry at that last word, but he tuned a bit harder. 

"But she knows, my cousin who's practically my big sister-slash-aunt knows, and you know that what I really want to do....I want to fly those planes, Pan. And not the big, slow, cargo ones, or airliners or whatever. I want to fly something fast. It sound silly, when I'll probably end up faster than anything they'll make before I'm dead from old age."

He strummed an aimless chord of music.
"Assuming I don't keel over halfway there like my dad."
Those words had an edge of still-raw sadness and bitterness to them.

"But yeah. I want to fly fighter jets. Something fast, where it's just me, the plane, and the sky. No powers. No super-suits. Just...skill and machine, working together."

He started to play a haunting tune.

"It worked for Cousin Janet. At least until she got her powers as her plane blew up around her. And now...part of me wants to be a hero, too. Two strikes, with my mom. Dad was a cop, you know? Worried her sick."

 

He lapsed into silence for a moment, continuing to play.

 

"Also, Leroy's kind of a stuck-up jerk who probably couldn't find his behind from his nose if it wasn't on a silver platter, and I wanted to deck him in the face and freeze him to the ground earlier."

 

[Heritage]

Crystal-Gazer, Outside

 

Lulu laughed and wiped her eyes again, but at least now there were some happy tears mixed in as well.

 

- Telepathy's weird; by bypassing the spoken word, you get this sort of 'instant connection' that I'm not always sure is a good thing. But I try to at least honor it, and save it for the people I know I'll like.-

 

She took out a compact and quickly checked her make-up; as she suspected, ruined by her tears. Rather than take the time to fix it, she just said 'fuggit' and hid it with an illusion.

 

- Well, I'll let you go; don't want your new roomie to think you're a weirdo who stares off into space all day! Take care, Nick! I'll see you around. -

 

Picking up her clipboard, Lulu got up and head back toward the dorm entrance to resume her position as greeter. Noticing a big young man in an football jacket approaching, she called out to him and waved. 

 

"Hi there, welcome to Claremont!"

Edited September 26, 2019 by Heritage

[TheAbsurdist]

He stopped as the pretty red head approached him,.  Yeah, sure, this made sense.  Different time and school an' all that.  Benny shifted back to his heels as he nodded as he nodded, "Ah, yeah, hi there."  He smiled back, easily.  Looking all for the world like a big, meathead jock, but at least a smiley one, wearing a pair of khaki cargo shorts, and a red shirt that matched the letterman jacket he had on.  "Yeah, yeah, sorry, name's Benny, I'm..."  Frowning as he realized he had no more hand space left to grab the slip of paper from his pocket.  His accent that flat local thing that Jersey-ites had

The solution presented itself easily, as he tossed he duffel up, and his hand moved into his pocket to pull out the the slip, and he looked down at it, reading it as his duffel fell down onto an extended leg, catching it with his shin and the top of his foot, and lowering it.  "Ah, room 214?"

[RocketLord]

Forever Boy

 

"I have not, but add me!" Pan called out to Davyd, as he raised his hand in a greeting before following along with Micah to the roof. He slowly started floating rather than walking, his feet reaching just an inch or so above the floor and stairs, leaving just a faint trail of Pixie Dust dropping from his feet. 

 

Swinging his phone around in his hand a bit, he quickly shifted it into his pocket and answered Micah's question about Davyd. "A trip to the Carribean, Veronica was kind enough to invite Davyd, Lulu, Adam and myself." He could tell more, of course, but it felt like Micah needed to get things off his chest, so he held back. His stories of adventure could always wait for another day.

 

He followed, and listened, floating alongside his friend with his hands behind his back. He talked of his family, of fights with his mother, of the death of his father, of his plans for the future. Truth to be told, Pan had a hard time relating. He had never known a parent, he had never had anyone that he cared about holding him back from his dreams. Never been the one to stop others, or be stopped in turn, but still, he listened, sitting down on the air and floating just off the side of the roof as Micah played the haunting melody. There was something familiar about it, to tell the truth, but Pan couldn't quite place it.

 

"Ha!" He couldn't help himself, after the somber speech, after talking about his future, his fears, and then, his dressing down of Leroy. 

 

He chuckled for a moment, before taking a deep breath to try and stop. "Sorry my friend, that last note was just... perfect!" He let out another short giggle, before shaking his head. "I must admit, I know little of a mother's love. That has always been an absence for me, but I believe that her position comes from care, rather than any malice, no?" He made a slight pause, for the effect, of course. "But, even then, I believe that you should do what you want to do. If you want to fly, then you fly, under your own power or in a marvelous machine! If you want to be a hero, to protect people, then I believe there is no higher calling than that of adventure!" He was moving his hands in front of himself, weaving images out of his Pixie Dust, of Micah, flying in a rough approximation of a fighter jet that Pan had seen once, but was obviously unfamiliar with. He held his hand up, palm to the sky, and let the tiny Micah fly around them in the jet, with sound and everything. "I do not know what happened to your father, and I am truly sorry for your loss, my friend, but is part of love not the ability to let someone be themselves? To let them do what they need to do? Given time, I am sure that your mother will understand." His lips twisted into a mischievous smile. "And besides, if I remember the rules of this world right, it is not like she can stop you once you come of age, no?" 

 

As the little plane flew around them still, Pan's thoughts turned to something else, that last part. Micah's statement to Leroy, while not unexpected, was perhaps a tiny bit exaggerated. Now, Pan was all for playing a prank, but Micah's feelings on Leroy seemed excessive for something as small as Leroy's little insult. Pan leaned in, just a bit closer. "Now, about Leroy: I can freely admit that he is not easiest person to get along with here, but I have fought alongside him, and perhaps that has helped a bit, but I cannot help that there is something more to this than what happened earlier. Am I completely wrong here, my friend?" He kept his eyes close on Micah. There was a mystery here, small as it might be, and he would solve it.

[Heritage]

Lulu was impressed by the new boy's athleticism. "Wow, you must be really good at hacky-sack! Okay, let me look at mah almighty clipboard here... Yep, here you are, 'Benjamin d'Amato, room 214'!" She looked up at him brightly; her accent placed her from somewhere in the Deep South.

 

"Well ah'm Lulu Beaumont, and ah'm part of the Welcomin' Committee. Pleased to meet you." She carefully shook his free hand, not wanting to topple him. "Once you readjust your burdens, ah'll be happy to show you to your room." She would have offered to take his duffel bag, but it looked a little heavy for her feeble arms.

Edited September 26, 2019 by Heritage

[TheAbsurdist]

Benny shrugged at that assertion, he didn't know what that was.  "Ah, I guess?  Dunno what that is..." he left it dangling as he forcibly dropped the rest of what he would say in that instant.  The yearish it had been helped, it let him not just immediately look like a out of time rube.  Which... can't be too normal right?  Right?

"Nice ta meetcha Lulu, but it's like Benny or Frankie, cause it's Benjamin Franklin, but... yeah."  He continued as he lifted his leg up and bent forward a little to snatch up that bag.  "Whicha way to the dorms?"  He didn't look around him like a lot of the other teens, he didn't seem paranoid, or really much of anything other than what was face value.  Which was not necessarily a truism.

[Dr Archeville]

Horroshow -- Dorm Interior, 2nd Floor

 

Davyd waved his roommate over, "sure, Ben, c'mon!"  Then he remembered what his roommate assignment letter said about Ben's hearing, twisted his torso life taffy until his face was pointed towards Ben, and repeated his invite.

 

He snapped back before he got outside -- he knew his parents were still getting used to the whole "superpowered son" thing, though his uncle and babusya were much cooler with it.  As they worked, Ben got to learn a bit more about Davyd's family.  His mother, a somewhat stoic, no-nonsense type, worked as an auto mechanic, a job she'd had since before they'd moved to America.  They did that because of the Chernobyl Disaster, which was about 50 miles from their home.  On the boat over to America's west coast, she met a talented musician, and they soon fell in love.  Davyd's father, something of an aged hippie, still performed -- violin, sopilka (wooden flute), and buben (tambourine), and vocals -- at numerous bars and clubs, but never did it for fame, he just liked making others happy.  Uncle Sasha did a lot of odd jobs for various community organizations for the Ukrainian communities in Freedom.  The VW microbus they were using to carry Dayv's stuff from the family's apartment in Riverside was borrowed from a catering company, and carried a lot of distinct smells.  His grandmother -- babusya, which she soon insisted Ben call her -- seemed very impressed with Ben's multidexterity, and soon coaxed from him his favorite foods and drinks.  She seemed the most at ease at Claremont (with Sasha a close second), and hinted that she'd lived a long and interesting life, so nothing much fazed her.

 

In almost no time, the microbus was emptied, the Palahniuk's said their goodbyes -- including back-slaps for Ben from Sasha, and hugs for him from Babusya -- and the two were left to their own devices.

 

"Hey, I got an invite to go up to the roof and hang out with Micah and some others while he plays guitar.  Wanna come?"

[Semi-Autogyro]

The song that Claude had been listening too finished so he decided might was well go explore the campus some more. Or look for some food. Either sounded fine. Claude had seen the e-mail that indicated the cafeteria would be open if the parents wanted to eat with their kids before they left. 'Eh, beats sittin' here staring at nothin' at least and I'll get a bead on if I should skip eatin' chow in this joint,' he thought to himself as he rose to his feet and took out his earbuds.

 

Once he did so, Claude heard the last strains of one of the Man in Blacks' more famous songs. Well, cover. Cash did more than his fair share of those. Whoever playing wasn't bad, they sounded more like a serious hobbyist than professional but the emotion was there. That would mark another one of his future classmates that had been packing an axe of some form. In this case wooden. 'Maybe I'll ask around later on in the semester if anybody is interested in making a band,' the Bostonian idly mused as he walked towards the pair of students. Nicky boy back in the room had a decent electric from what he had seen.

 

He caught the tail end of their conversation as the red haired boy was much more animated than his more morose counterpart with the acoustic in his hands. The subject was about Leroy and his ill advised earlier antics. 'Eesh, not touchin' that train wreck again,' Claude thought as he cleared his throat to get their attention."Yo," he drawled as he gave the pair a lazy wave in greeting before addressing the guitarist. "Just wanted to say that was a good unplugged cover of Riders ya just did."